Those of you who thought of Donna Summer's hit from the 1980s just put a date stamp on yourselves, lol!
Today's topic is "work". The text is Colossians 3:22-25 and 4:1 (NIV).
22Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. 23Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, 24since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.25Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for their wrongs, and there is no favoritism.
1Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven.
These verses pertained to slaves and masters, in Paul's day. (Some of you are saying, "That's right...describes my workplace perfectly!") Well, I hope not. But, I realize that some work situations are very difficult to bear, due to unruly coworkers or overbearing bosses. I've endured both. At various times, I've been perceived as both. So, I'm "widja". Let's apply the principles of these verses to the workplace, today's modern application.
God blessed me with a wonderful 36-year career in the sphere of education. For the first 10 years, I taught. For the next 21, I was "in management". For the last five, I was a self-employed, free-lance teacher and for part of that a part-time university professor. Now, I find myself sort of "untethered" as far as "paying work" is concerned. For the first time since my teens, I am not "bringing in a salary" of any sort, but am devoting a lot of my time to ministry...this blog, video blogs, church work. I'm also still mothering two young adult sons and supporting other family members as needed. It keeps me busy enough.
Enough about "yours truly".
The urgings from this passage are pretty straightforward.
1. Regardless of your job or position, throw your heart into it and do your work as though you are working for the Lord...because you are. Whether in management or on the "assembly line", everyone has a "boss" (if not earthly, then heavenly). You may think that yours is the absolute worst. But, ultimately, you are not working for your boss. You are working for God. If you cannot support the culture and mission of your employer, though, and after much prayer it still seems "irredeemable", I'd start looking for another position.
The "sweet spot" for the Christian is when you are doing work you believe God designed you and called you to do. Then is when one's work becomes gloriously fulfilling! Many young people have trouble deciding what to do as a life's career. My advice is this: explore what you are both good at and what you enjoy. If you can make a living at that, go for it. When you find the "sweet spot", you'll never dread going to work each day. That is a blessing!
2. Your reward is not your paycheck. Yes, paychecks are welcomed and they are necessary. However, the Christian's reward for doing a job well is the approval of our Savior. Those intangible rewards are not going to be fully seen until we are with Him in glory.
3. Don't worry about evildoers getting their own payback. There is no such thing as "karma", as the world calls it. God, however, is much more just and real than "karma". God will right wrongs and avenge injustices. He does not play favorites. As godly bosses here on earth, we are to model our leadership after God's. We are to do our best to deal with our employees in a way that is both right, fair and ... I would add, selfless and compassionate.
4. The Importance of Teamwork
Regardless of the field, it is important that the employees and management are pulling in the same direction and helping each other. This is where the "slaves/master" reality from 1st century Holy Land breaks down. Applying a slave-master paradigm to the current workplace is just ridiculously ineffective, to put it mildly. Let me give you a more modern twist to illustrate.
There will be times when management makes some rule, and it is "boneheaded". Usually what happens is that they think they are doing the right thing, but they don't see all the potential results this move would make. On the other hand, management often has to implement policies or change the work environment according to information that the employees don't have access to and, by law, cannot have access to. So, this is where a certain level of trust comes in. Trust is both earned and given. When something is perceived to be detrimental to the health of the organization as a whole, both parties (employees and management) must approach each other to either get clarification or to address the problem. Unfortunately, the customary response is to be tone-deaf to each other and then sit back and gripe about it. This is not productive.
Well, well, I could go on and on until this becomes some sort of mini-book about work and leadership, which I have no desire to write.
Father, thank you for giving each of us a skill-set which we can then choose to use for Your glory. May we use it for the furtherance of Your kingdom, and not for our own self-aggrandizement. May we deal humbly with each other, not in an exaggerated sense of importance, each Christian seeking to exhibit all the attributes of the holy, godly walk, in our workplaces. In Jesus' name, amen.
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